A Psalter Companion
Thematic Titles for all CL Psalms
After the manner of W. E. Gladstone’s Concordance to the Psalter (1895)
as revised by George Wharton Pepper in
An Analytical Index to the Book of Common Prayer (1948)
For use with the Coverdale Psalter of the 1928 Book of Common Prayer
Anglican Province of Christ the King
Preface
William Ewart Gladstone — four times Prime Minister, Homeric scholar, and devoted churchman — turned in the final years of his life to the compilation of a Concordance to the Psalter as used in the Book of Common Prayer. The work was published by John Murray, London, in 1895, three years before his death. It was the labour of a man who had prayed the Psalms daily throughout a long and extraordinary life, and who knew from experience that a comprehensive tool for navigating the Psalter was among the most useful things that could be placed in the hands of a worshipping Christian.
Gladstone's Concordance included, among its auxiliary matter, a thematic title for each of the 150 Psalms — a brief, precise description of the Psalm's dominant theme or theological subject. These titles distil the character of each Psalm into a phrase that guides the worshipper toward its central meaning: not merely a description of its contents, but an interpretation of its spirit.
George Wharton Pepper (1867–1961), Senator for Pennsylvania, churchman, and devoted servant of the 1928 Book of Common Prayer, incorporated Gladstone's Psalter material into his Analytical Index to the Book of Common Prayer (John C. Winston Company, Philadelphia, 1948), revising the titles to accord with the 1928 revision of the Psalter and publishing them with the concurrence of Gladstone's family. Pepper's Analytical Index also includes a Table of Principal Changes in the Psalter Made in the Revision of 1928 — a verse-by-verse comparison of the earlier Coverdale text against the 1928 revision — which forms a companion document to this Psalter Companion.
The present work transcribes Gladstone's titles as revised by Pepper, adds a classified subject index grouping the Psalms by theological and devotional theme, and presents the whole in the typographic style of the Saints' Meditations archive of the Anglican Province of Christ the King. The page numbers in Pepper's edition refer to the pages of the 1928 BCP as printed by the John C. Winston Company; they are retained here for reference but are not the primary navigation tool. The Psalm numbers are.
The use of Gladstone's material is acknowledged with gratitude to his memory and to the tradition of Anglican Psalmody which he, like Coverdale before him, served with such devotion.
Part I
The Psalms with their Thematic Titles
In the five Books of the Psalter, as ordered in the 1928 BCP
Book I · Psalms 1–41
Psalm 1 · The Way of the Righteous
Psalm 2 · God's Sovereignty
Psalm 3 · God My Defender
Psalm 4 · God My Protector
Psalm 5 · Trust in God
Psalm 6 · Release from Sin
Psalm 7 · God is My Helper
Psalm 8 · God the Creator
Psalm 9 · God's Judgment
Psalm 10 · The Ungodly Rebuked
Psalm 11 · Trust in God
Psalm 12 · God to the Rescue
Psalm 13 · Plea for Remembrance
Psalm 14 · Waiting for Salvation
Psalm 15 · The Man After God's Own Heart
Psalm 16 · The Path of Life
Psalm 17 · Communion with God
Psalm 18 · God the Defender
Psalm 19 · Creation and the Divine Law
Psalm 20 · Prayer Answered
Psalm 21 · Messiah
Psalm 22 · A Cry for Help
Psalm 23 · The Good Shepherd
Psalm 24 · The King of Glory
Psalm 25 · The Reward of Faith
Psalm 26 · Fellowship with God
Psalm 27 · The Lord My Light
Psalm 28 · Strength Through Trust
Psalm 29 · God's Supremacy
Psalm 30 · Thanksgiving for Deliverance
Psalm 31 · Trust and Confidence
Psalm 32 · Joy after Repentance
Psalm 33 · Thankfulness of the Righteous
Psalm 34 · The Graciousness of God
Psalm 35 · Plea for God's Help
Psalm 36 · The Well of Life
Psalm 37 · The Peace of Innocency
Psalm 38 · Turning to God
Psalm 39 · The Span of Life
Psalm 40 · Patient Waiting for Redemption
Psalm 41 · Consideration for the Poor
Book II · Psalms 42–72
Psalm 42 · The Soul's Thirst for God
Psalm 43 · A Plea for Guidance
Psalm 44 · National Traditions
Psalm 45 · God Enthroned
Psalm 46 · God Our Hope and Strength
Psalm 47 · The King of All the Earth
Psalm 48 · God Our Sure Refuge
Psalm 49 · A Man Takes Nothing with Him
Psalm 50 · God's Self-Revelation
Psalm 51 · The Cry of the Penitent
Psalm 52 · The Folly of Unrighteousness
Psalm 53 · The Confusion of the Ungodly
Psalm 54 · The Offering of a Free Heart
Psalm 55 · Deliverance from Covenant-Breakers
Psalm 56 · Comfort of God's Word
Psalm 57 · God's Care for Me
Psalm 58 · The Vindication of Righteousness
Psalm 59 · Man's Helplessness and God's Power
Psalm 60 · God the Strength of the Nation
Psalm 61 · God the Strength of the King
Psalm 62 · The Deceitfulness of the Worldly
Psalm 63 · Dependence on God
Psalm 64 · The Insurrection of Wicked Doers
Psalm 65 · The Fatherlike Creator
Psalm 66 · A Song of Praise
Psalm 67 · God's Universal Sovereignty
Psalm 68 · The God of National Unity
Psalm 69 · For Deliverance from the Water Floods
Psalm 70 · A Cry for God's Help
Psalm 71 · Trust in God's Constancy
Psalm 72 · God the Father of His People
Book III · Psalms 73–89
Psalm 73 · God's Love the Soul's Reward
Psalm 74 · A Cry in the Dark
Psalm 75 · God the Judge
Psalm 76 · When God Arose to Judgment
Psalm 77 · A Song of Deliverance
Psalm 78 · God the Saviour of the Nation
Psalm 79 · The Lament of the Captives
Psalm 80 · A Plea for the Good Shepherd
Psalm 81 · The Lost Opportunity
Psalm 82 · God's Universal Justice
Psalm 83 · An Appeal for Help
Psalm 84 · From Strength to Strength
Psalm 85 · The Meeting of Mercy and Truth
Psalm 86 · A Plea for God's Comfort
Psalm 87 · The City of God
Psalm 88 · An Appeal in Misery
Psalm 89 · National Apostasy
Book IV · Psalms 90–106
Psalm 90 · The Shortness of Life
Psalm 91 · Dwelling Under the Defence of the Most High
Psalm 92 · Exultation
Psalm 93 · Man's Extremity — God's Opportunity
Psalm 94 · The All-seeing God
Psalm 95 · Invitation to Worship
Psalm 96 · The Beauty of Holiness
Psalm 97 · God's Overpowering Majesty
Psalm 98 · Chorused Joy
Psalm 99 · God's Majesty
Psalm 100 · The Gladness of Service
Psalm 101 · Companionship with the Godly
Psalm 102 · In Sackcloth and Ashes
Psalm 103 · God's Limitless Mercy
Psalm 104 · God's Manifold Works
Psalm 105 · The God-fearing Nation
Psalm 106 · National Punishment for Mass Iniquity
Book V · Psalms 107–150
Psalm 107 · God's Loving-Kindness to the Nation
Psalm 108 · God the Source of National Strength
Psalm 109 · Denunciation of the Ungodly
Psalm 110 · The Vision of the Messiah
Psalm 111 · The Beginning of Wisdom
Psalm 112 · The Steadfastness of the God-fearing Man
Psalm 113 · God's Condescension
Psalm 114 · Awe-struck Nature
Psalm 115 · A Rebuke to Idolators
Psalm 116 · The Sacrifice of Thanksgiving
Psalm 117 · God's Enduring Truth
Psalm 118 · Rejoicing in the Day of the Lord
Psalm 119 · The Law of the Lord
Psalm 120 · A Rebuke to Warmongers
Psalm 121 · Help to Scale the Heights
Psalm 122 · The Vision of Peace
Psalm 123 · Waiting for the Lord
Psalm 124 · The Lord to the Rescue
Psalm 125 · Steadfastness in Trust
Psalm 126 · Reaping in Joy
Psalm 127 · The God-fearing Household
Psalm 128 · The Blessing of the God-fearing
Psalm 129 · The Survival of the God-fearing Nation
Psalm 130 · Out of the Deep
Psalm 131 · Childlikeness
Psalm 132 · Building the Temple
Psalm 133 · Dwelling in Unity
Psalm 134 · They Also Serve
Psalm 135 · The Futility of Idolatry
Psalm 136 · National Thanksgiving
Psalm 137 · Homesickness
Psalm 138 · God's Care for the Lowly
Psalm 139 · God, the Searcher of Hearts
Psalm 140 · A Plea for Rescue
Psalm 141 · A Cry in Perplexity
Psalm 142 · Sanctuary
Psalm 143 · Man's Helplessness
Psalm 144 · Infinite Condescension
Psalm 145 · God's Open-handedness
Psalm 146 · God, the Father
Psalm 147 · The Most Favoured Nation
Psalm 148 · A Chorus of Praise
Psalm 149 · Praise God and Carry the Sword
Psalm 150 · Glory to God in the Highest
Part II
A Classified Index to the Psalter
The Psalms grouped by theological and devotional theme
This classified index groups the Psalms by their dominant theological theme, as indicated by Gladstone and Pepper’s thematic titles. A Psalm may answer to more than one theme; it is placed here under its primary character. The classification is intended as a practical aid to the priest preparing a service, choosing a Psalm for a pastoral occasion, or seeking the Psalter’s witness on a given doctrine or condition of soul.
The Character and Attributes of God
God's Sovereignty (2) · God the Creator (8) · God's Judgment (9) · God's Self-Revelation (50) · God the Judge (75) · God's Overpowering Majesty (97) · God's Majesty (99) · God's Manifold Works (104) · God's Limitless Mercy (103) · God's Open-handedness (145) · God's Enduring Truth (117) · God's Condescension (113) · God, the Father (146)
Trust, Confidence, and Refuge
God My Defender (3) · God My Protector (4) · Trust in God (5, 11) · God is My Helper (7) · God Our Hope and Strength (46) · God Our Sure Refuge (48) · Strength Through Trust (28) · Trust and Confidence (31) · Trust in God's Constancy (71) · Steadfastness in Trust (125)
Praise, Thanksgiving, and Worship
The Gladness of Service (100) · Invitation to Worship (95) · The Beauty of Holiness (96) · Chorused Joy (98) · A Song of Praise (66) · National Thanksgiving (136) · The Sacrifice of Thanksgiving (116) · Thanksgiving for Deliverance (30) · Thankfulness of the Righteous (33) · A Chorus of Praise (148) · Glory to God in the Highest (150) · Rejoicing in the Day of the Lord (118)
Penitence, Forgiveness, and Restoration
The Cry of the Penitent (51) · Joy after Repentance (32) · Release from Sin (6) · Turning to God (38) · In Sackcloth and Ashes (102) · Out of the Deep (130) · Man's Helplessness (143) · Plea for Remembrance (13)
The Soul's Longing for God
The Soul's Thirst for God (42) · A Plea for Guidance (43) · Communion with God (17) · Fellowship with God (26) · Dependence on God (63) · The Lord My Light (27) · Waiting for the Lord (123) · The Man After God's Own Heart (15)
God's Care and Providence
The Good Shepherd (23) · God's Care for Me (57) · God's Care for the Lowly (138) · The Fatherlike Creator (65) · From Strength to Strength (84) · The Gladness of Service (100) · God's Loving-Kindness to the Nation (107) · Help to Scale the Heights (121) · The Lord to the Rescue (124)
The Messiah and the Kingdom
Messiah (21) · God Enthroned (45) · The King of Glory (24) · The Vision of the Messiah (110) · God the Father of His People (72) · The City of God (87) · The Vision of Peace (122) · A Plea for the Good Shepherd (80) · Dwelling in Unity (133)
Suffering, Trial, and Deliverance
A Cry for Help (22) · A Cry in the Dark (74) · An Appeal in Misery (88) · A Cry in Perplexity (141) · A Plea for Rescue (140) · An Appeal for Help (83) · Patient Waiting for Redemption (40) · Sanctuary (142) · A Cry for God's Help (70) · For Deliverance from the Water Floods (69)
Justice, Judgment, and the Ungodly
The Ungodly Rebuked (10) · The Peace of Innocency (37) · The Vindication of Righteousness (58) · God's Universal Justice (82) · When God Arose to Judgment (76) · The Insurrection of Wicked Doers (64) · The Confusion of the Ungodly (53) · The Folly of Unrighteousness (52) · The All-seeing God (94) · Denunciation of the Ungodly (109) · Man's Extremity — God's Opportunity (93)
The Scriptures and the Law
The Law of the Lord (119) · Creation and the Divine Law (19) · The Beginning of Wisdom (111)
The Nation, the Church, and Human Society
National Traditions (44) · God the Saviour of the Nation (78) · God the Source of National Strength (108) · The God-fearing Nation (105) · National Punishment for Mass Iniquity (106) · National Apostasy (89) · The Lament of the Captives (79) · National Thanksgiving (136) · God the Strength of the Nation (60) · The God of National Unity (68) · Reaping in Joy (126) · Homesickness (137) · Building the Temple (132) · The God-fearing Household (127) · The Blessing of the God-fearing (128)
The Life of the Righteous
The Way of the Righteous (1) · The Path of Life (16) · The Reward of Faith (25) · Fellowship with God (26) · Consideration for the Poor (41) · Companionship with the Godly (101) · Childlikeness (131) · The Steadfastness of the God-fearing Man (112) · The Survival of the God-fearing Nation (129)
The Shortness of Life and the Hope of Immortality
The Span of Life (39) · The Shortness of Life (90) · A Man Takes Nothing with Him (49) · God, the Searcher of Hearts (139) · God's Love the Soul's Reward (73)
Part III
On the Use of the Psalter in the Daily Office
The Coverdale Psalter — the version of the Psalms found in the Book of Common Prayer — is not merely the oldest translation of the Psalms into English that remains in regular liturgical use; it is the translation that has formed the devotional character of Anglican Christianity more deeply than any other single text. Miles Coverdale's rendering, made in 1535 from the Latin Vulgate and German versions rather than the Hebrew, is in some respects less accurate than later translations, and Pepper's table of the 1928 revisions shows precisely where the revisers corrected the most egregious inaccuracies. But Coverdale gave the Psalms a musical and devotional quality that has never been surpassed, and the BCP's decision to retain his translation even when the King James Version was adopted for the rest of Scripture was not inertia but wisdom.
The 1928 revision of the Psalter was conservative. The revisers retained the general character and much of the specific wording of the Coverdale text while correcting passages that had become seriously misleading or that reflected the influence of the Latin rather than the Hebrew. The table of changes compiled by Pepper records those alterations verse by verse — not every change being linguistically significant, but each reflecting a careful scholarly judgment about the balance between accuracy and continuity.
The five Books of the Psalter reflect the Psalter's own internal editorial history: Books I and II are the oldest collections, centring on Davidic Psalms of personal prayer; Book III gathers the Psalms of the national crisis and the theology of suffering; Book IV responds to the exile with the great doxological Psalms; and Book V moves toward the hallelujah conclusion of Psalms 146–150. The thematic titles given here follow this theological geography — the shift from the individual voice to the national voice to the cosmic voice is one of the great movements of Scripture, and the Daily Office, in moving through the Psalter monthly, traverses it repeatedly throughout the year.
For the priest using the Psalter in daily office, the thematic titles serve several purposes. They assist in the preparation of a brief comment on the Psalm before it is sung or said; they provide a vocabulary for connecting the Psalm to the day's readings or the liturgical season; and they serve as a navigational tool for pastoral use, when the priest needs to direct a parishioner to the Psalm most apt for their particular condition of soul. The classified index in Part II is designed for precisely this last purpose.
It is worth noting that the Psalter's range is wider than the classifications suggest. Every Psalm of lament contains, somewhere, a movement toward trust. Every Psalm of praise has been tested by suffering. The thematic titles name the dominant note, not the whole chord. The priest who has prayed the Psalter daily for years will know what the titles cannot fully convey: that the Psalms are less a collection of religious poems than a living voice, speaking in and through the whole range of human experience, and finding in every condition of soul — from the depths of Psalm 88 to the heights of Psalm 150 — the same God, the same faithfulness, and the same inexhaustible capacity for praise.
Part IV
Quick Reference — All 150 Psalms
Numbers and thematic titles in order
| 1 The Way of the Righteous | 76 When God Arose to Judgment |
|---|---|
| 2 God's Sovereignty | 77 A Song of Deliverance |
| 3 God My Defender | 78 God the Saviour of the Nation |
| 4 God My Protector | 79 The Lament of the Captives |
| 5 Trust in God | 80 A Plea for the Good Shepherd |
| 6 Release from Sin | 81 The Lost Opportunity |
| 7 God is My Helper | 82 God's Universal Justice |
| 8 God the Creator | 83 An Appeal for Help |
| 9 God's Judgment | 84 From Strength to Strength |
| 10 The Ungodly Rebuked | 85 The Meeting of Mercy and Truth |
| 11 Trust in God | 86 A Plea for God's Comfort |
| 12 God to the Rescue | 87 The City of God |
| 13 Plea for Remembrance | 88 An Appeal in Misery |
| 14 Waiting for Salvation | 89 National Apostasy |
| 15 The Man After God's Own Heart | 90 The Shortness of Life |
| 16 The Path of Life | 91 Dwelling Under the Defence of the Most High |
| 17 Communion with God | 92 Exultation |
| 18 God the Defender | 93 Man's Extremity — God's Opportunity |
| 19 Creation and the Divine Law | 94 The All-seeing God |
| 20 Prayer Answered | 95 Invitation to Worship |
| 21 Messiah | 96 The Beauty of Holiness |
| 22 A Cry for Help | 97 God's Overpowering Majesty |
| 23 The Good Shepherd | 98 Chorused Joy |
| 24 The King of Glory | 99 God's Majesty |
| 25 The Reward of Faith | 100 The Gladness of Service |
| 26 Fellowship with God | 101 Companionship with the Godly |
| 27 The Lord My Light | 102 In Sackcloth and Ashes |
| 28 Strength Through Trust | 103 God's Limitless Mercy |
| 29 God's Supremacy | 104 God's Manifold Works |
| 30 Thanksgiving for Deliverance | 105 The God-fearing Nation |
| 31 Trust and Confidence | 106 National Punishment for Mass Iniquity |
| 32 Joy after Repentance | 107 God's Loving-Kindness to the Nation |
| 33 Thankfulness of the Righteous | 108 God the Source of National Strength |
| 34 The Graciousness of God | 109 Denunciation of the Ungodly |
| 35 Plea for God's Help | 110 The Vision of the Messiah |
| 36 The Well of Life | 111 The Beginning of Wisdom |
| 37 The Peace of Innocency | 112 The Steadfastness of the God-fearing Man |
| 38 Turning to God | 113 God's Condescension |
| 39 The Span of Life | 114 Awe-struck Nature |
| 40 Patient Waiting for Redemption | 115 A Rebuke to Idolators |
| 41 Consideration for the Poor | 116 The Sacrifice of Thanksgiving |
| 42 The Soul's Thirst for God | 117 God's Enduring Truth |
| 43 A Plea for Guidance | 118 Rejoicing in the Day of the Lord |
| 44 National Traditions | 119 The Law of the Lord |
| 45 God Enthroned | 120 A Rebuke to Warmongers |
| 46 God Our Hope and Strength | 121 Help to Scale the Heights |
| 47 The King of All the Earth | 122 The Vision of Peace |
| 48 God Our Sure Refuge | 123 Waiting for the Lord |
| 49 A Man Takes Nothing with Him | 124 The Lord to the Rescue |
| 50 God's Self-Revelation | 125 Steadfastness in Trust |
| 51 The Cry of the Penitent | 126 Reaping in Joy |
| 52 The Folly of Unrighteousness | 127 The God-fearing Household |
| 53 The Confusion of the Ungodly | 128 The Blessing of the God-fearing |
| 54 The Offering of a Free Heart | 129 The Survival of the God-fearing Nation |
| 55 Deliverance from Covenant-Breakers | 130 Out of the Deep |
| 56 Comfort of God's Word | 131 Childlikeness |
| 57 God's Care for Me | 132 Building the Temple |
| 58 The Vindication of Righteousness | 133 Dwelling in Unity |
| 59 Man's Helplessness and God's Power | 134 They Also Serve |
| 60 God the Strength of the Nation | 135 The Futility of Idolatry |
| 61 God the Strength of the King | 136 National Thanksgiving |
| 62 The Deceitfulness of the Worldly | 137 Homesickness |
| 63 Dependence on God | 138 God's Care for the Lowly |
| 64 The Insurrection of Wicked Doers | 139 God, the Searcher of Hearts |
| 65 The Fatherlike Creator | 140 A Plea for Rescue |
| 66 A Song of Praise | 141 A Cry in Perplexity |
| 67 God's Universal Sovereignty | 142 Sanctuary |
| 68 The God of National Unity | 143 Man's Helplessness |
| 69 For Deliverance from the Water Floods | 144 Infinite Condescension |
| 70 A Cry for God's Help | 145 God's Open-handedness |
| 71 Trust in God's Constancy | 146 God, the Father |
| 72 God the Father of His People | 147 The Most Favoured Nation |
| 73 God's Love the Soul's Reward | 148 A Chorus of Praise |
| 74 A Cry in the Dark | 149 Praise God and Carry the Sword |
| 75 God the Judge | 150 Glory to God in the Highest |